Rehoboth Beach Half Marathon Recap

The Rehoboth Beach races had been on my radar for awhile. I was excited to finally sign up for the half marathon and made it a girls weekend – five of us rented a house at the beach and signed up to race. I was planning on running this one for fun – and also planning on testing out fueling and hydration without a handheld. I’ve decided I’d like to be able to race without a handheld which means that I needed to find some kind of gel / fuel that I could take on the run and practice getting water at the water stops. This was my longest race without carrying a handheld and my first long race using Huma gels to fuel. My plan was to take a gel at miles 5 and 10 and to hit up water stops as needed. I have a hard time with gels – I can not stomach gu and haven’t had success with other brands. I like Shot Bloks but can’t take those for a full marathon – too much sugar. So I thought the Huma gels might be a good compromise – something I could take during a longer race that wouldn’t upset my stomach and wouldn’t require me to carry anything.

Race day morning dawned chilly, with a bit of wind but with a gorgeous sky (see below!). I was hoping to run sub-2 but definitely not planning to race it. I thought the timing was perfect as a check-in as I start training for my goal half marathon this spring. Here’s how the race went:

Miles 1-3 (9:39/9:02/8:55)

The race started a few minutes late and we were all pretty raring to go. Once the gun went off, we all headed out and I prepared to settle in to a comfortable pace. Again, while I wanted to have a good race and thought this race could be a good benchmark to start my half marathon training. As is my hope for every race, my first mile turned out to be my slowest, which is great. About one mile in, I met and settled in with a couple of Oiselle birds – Christine from NJ and Sarah from NY. We ended up running almost the whole race together and that was SUCH fun. Just running and chatting and having a great time.

Miles 4-6 (8:45/8:53/8:51)

After mile 3, the full marathoners split off so the crowd thins out significantly. We really got in a groove and the miles literally just ticked by. I was having a blast. Around mile 4.5, I started taking my Huma gel (strawberry flavored, FYI) and took it over the course of almost a mile. I had no trouble getting it down and was able to follow it with some water from a water stop. I really liked not carrying anything in my hands and will continue to train to use this strategy in races.

Miles 7-10 (9:04/9:04/8:52/9:09)

At mile 7 the course entered a park and we were running on a bit of a rocky trail. It wasn’t bad by any means, but it wasn’t paved road. I didn’t mind the change of scenery but my pace did slow a bit during these miles. The sun was high in the sky by then and I wished I’d had my sunglasses. However, the bright sun gave the trail and marsh near the trail the most scenic picture – it was really quite lovely. Around mile 8 or 9, teammate and housemate for the weekend, Chrissy, hopped in to run a few miles. Chrissy had to defer the race due to injury but ran a few miles just for fun.

Miles 11-13.1 (8:56/8:42/8:35)

Coming off the trail, we dropped pace once again and I was really happy to see that my final mile was my fastest. I was comfortable running and talking during the race, which lets me know that I could’ve shut up and worked a little harder, but honestly I didn’t want to. I wasn’t trying to set another PR but rather to have fun. And I did! I also only ran about 45 seconds slower than my PR after two months of running strictly for fun, so there’s that.

Final time: 1:57:31

After the race, we got in line for the after party. Rehoboth hosts a big party afterwards in a tent (crazy lines to get in and seemed JAM PACKED) and a restaurant (where we hung out). Once we got to the food (and beer), we couldn’t find anyplace to sit so we plunked down on the stage in the restaurant. It worked. The after party had free beer, soda, coffee and a buffet of salad (skipped that), hamburgers, baked beans, mac and cheese, waffles, biscuits and BACON (yes please!).

Overall, I loved this race and hope to have the chance to run it again next year. I feel really good about starting my new training cycle off so solidly and am pleased at my effort and the outcome. I will share more about my goals for my spring half marathon in due time, but I’m pleased with where I’m starting.

Have you ever run a half marathon on relatively little training? I WAS sore the next day but loved Rehoboth Beach!

Comments

Nice job on the strong finish! Looks like a ton of fun. Sometimes my better races are ones that I just go without a lot of training and stress.Deborah @ Confessions of a mother runner recently posted…“Tri” ing to Organize my 2017 Race Schedule

congrats! i saw a bunch of oiselle singlets out on the course! my friends and i hung out in the tent afterwards — you’re right, really jam packed. but sounds like the food was the same. i love rehoboth. i had a 3-minute PR last year and a 5-minute PR this year — gotta love that flat course!

Congrats on a great race! This one has been on my bucket list and I was just in Rehoboth right after the Chicago marathon for vacation. I will have to plan another trip to check out the race in 2017. I am so glad you enjoyed the race.

This sounds like an excellent race! I don’t live too far from Delaware so I might need to add this to my 2017 schedule!

I love that you are trying new running fuel. I am thinking of doing this myself for 2017. I just purchased some Generation UCAN products to try when I get back to running. I think I’ll also try HUMA as I know many runners love this brand as well.

This was my 4th Rehoboth and my second time doing the half. I love this race so much. It’s so easy because its on the smaller side. A big group of us from Charm City Run rent a house near the finish and walk out the door at 6:45 for a 7am start. And the afterparty is one of the best around. Good to see you out there – sorry I wasn’t able to connect with you or Sarah but hopefully we’ll meet up at another area race soon!

WHOA! Those post-race treats sound amazing; what a great race! I’m so glad that you felt no stress and had so much fun during this race; congratulations on all of your wonderful accomplishments this year, Courtney!

I seem to always be undertrained LOL, but it works for me. I love that race and contemplated running it, but in the end decided we needed a quiet weekend at home more. Nice job on the sub-2.MCM Mama recently posted…A Year in Running – 2016

This sounds like so much fun! I love not going into the race with a real goal then surprising myself. I seem to perform better just by running by feel and not putting so much pressure on myself. Big things coming up for you in 2017!!Alaina @ The Simple Peach recently posted…Five Lessons from 2 Marathons in 30 Days

Congrats on a great race! Glad your fueling strategy worked. I’ve heard great things about Rehobeth Beach but just haven’t been able to add it to my race calendar…maybe next year!Janelle @ Run With No Regrets recently posted…5 Awesome Holiday Gift Ideas for Runners

Sounds like a great way to do it (the friends and renting a house part). That’s one I’ve been eyeing, because my family used to go there often for vacation. Rehobeth Beach was our “easy” vacation we’d take most summers while saving up to do a bigger trip only every 4 or 5 years. I always like it there. Sounds like it was a good after party to go with it.